Indigo Moon

Indigo Hoffman is Offspring. This means that she was born to virally optimized parents. This also means that she can shift, and time travel, though she’s not actually allowed to do that. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t though. Indigo frequently travels to 1996 London to meet up with her friends. They don’t know who she is, or when she’s from, but they do know how to have fun.

Rigel Fletcher is also Offspring. He and Indigo are friends, their parents work together at Black Spiral Intelligence (BSI). Rigel knows about Indigo’s time traveling. He doesn’t agree with it, but the Offspring have their own set of rules, ones that aren’t to be broken. ‘Rule number one: Your fellow Offspring come first. Always.’

But when Indigo meets Billy Raven in the past, everything changes. At first, they’re friends, then more. And then he kidnaps her. Billy takes her to Laura, a virally optimized scientist working for the Spiral Foundation. The Spiral Foundation is basically the reason that Offspring exist at all; they are also BSI’s worst enemy. At the same time, Rigel’s father goes missing, most probably at the hands of the Foundation.

The Foundation needs Indigo’s stem cells. She is immune to the Riva virus, which appeared recently, but in the future will kill millions of people. If they have the stem cells, then they can make more people more immune to Riva. But this could come at the cost of Indigo’s life. Can Rigel get to Indigo before the damage is irreversible?

A thrilling and fast-paced adventure through time, while also exploring just how far people will go for humanity, and themselves.

I had read a lot of reviews on Indigo Moon before I ever picked it up. I have also contemplated reading it before, but never have, and it was good to be able to form my own opinions on the book. Firstly, I just want to say that the concepts behind the book are incredibly interesting, and I have never read anything quite like it. This is strange though, because the concepts are also parallel to our own world, so much so that you could almost imagine this as the future. You could see that inspiration had been drawn from current issues such as COVID-19 and arguments around genetic modification. I really enjoy reading a book that brings up controversial things, as it starts important conversations, while also making the plot seem even more relatable. And, I don’t know about other people, but I love the idea of shifting into other animals, and I wish I had that ability.

Unfortunately, I felt that the quality of writing was kind of up and down. Some parts were gripping, but other parts dragged on too long, and seemed shallow. This was unexpected, considering the content and the age group this book is meant for. I can’t deny that the book was fast paced, but some scenes, especially the ones between Indigo and Billy Raven seemed kind of unnecessary. This is kind of sad, because the romantic scenes meant that I couldn’t recommend this book to anyone younger than me, while otherwise I felt that I could have. Also, compared to the rest of the book, which was clear, and maybe even plausible, towards the end, it became confusing, which distanced me from the story.

Otherwise, I would say that this book is worth the read, if you’re looking for something to read in one sitting. I know that I will be reading the rest of the series. I would suggest that you read the Black Spiral trilogy first. It isn’t necessary, but it is referenced a lot. I haven’t read the previous series, but I feel that it would have lent more to the story if I had.

So, I would recommend this book to you if you are 15+ and enjoy dystopian fiction, science fiction or romantic fiction. This book will really make you think, even if you don’t go into it looking for a thought-provoking read. Happy reading!

- Nell is 15, home-schooled, and lives in Dunedin.